Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
The 'Union of Soviet Socialist Republics '(Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик; tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik), 'USSR '(Russian: CCCP; tr. SSSR), or 'Soviet Union '(Russian: Советский Союз, tr. Sovetsky Soyuz) is a communist state occupying large areas of eastern Europe and northern Asia. It is a single-party state composed of 21 Soviet Socialist Republics. It has a population of about 211,153,900 people. The current Soviet military population is at 24,131,874 people. The USSR was established by the communist rebels under Vladimir Illyich Lenin in the Russian Revolution after they defeated the White Army of the Russian Empire under Tsar Nikolai II, ending three hundred years of Tsarist rule. Following the Tsar's peaceful surrender and dissolution of the Tsardom up until his death, Lenin served as Premier of the Soviet Union, General Secretary of the Party, Chairman of the Politburo, and Speaker of the Soviet Congress. The current Premier is Leon Trotsky; the current General Secretary is Georgy Malenkov; the current Chairman is Nikolai Bukharin; the current Speaker is Sergei Kirov. The Premier, who runs the executive branch, is aided by a small group called the Politburo and the aforementioned Soviet Congress of 212 men. Both are made up entirely of communists, and there is little political freedom other than freedom of communism (In other words, you may pick any ideology as long as it is communist). The Politburo, the Premier's personal council, is currently made of six men: Foreign Minister Nikita Khrushchev, Economics Minister Grigory Zinoviev, Internal Affairs Minister Lev Kamenev, Defense Minister Georgy Zhukov, Intelligence Minister Lavrenty Beriya, and Information Minister Alexei Romanov (the former Tsarevich). The titles of Intelligence and Information Minister were held by Joseph Stalin before he was caught plotting against the other members of the Politburo and executed. Russia has since supported communist rebellions and governments in Denmark (after which part of Copenhagen was annexed and changed into the Danish Empire), Serbia, Bulgaria, Greater Spain (becoming the Communist Empire of Greater Spain), the Republic of Turkey and Morocco, putting some nearby nations on edge due to its growing influence. It is suspicious towards Austria-Hungary and Belgium but is generally on good terms with France and the German Empire. The Soviet Union is highly multiethnic in part due to its large size. It is inhabited by numerous ethnic groups, including the Russians, Icelanders, Danes, Finns, Poles, Lithuanians, Latvians, Estonians, Belarussians, Ukrainians, Moldavians, Georgians, Azerbaijanis, Armenians, Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Turkmens, Kyrgyz, Tajiks, Komi, Karelians, Tatars, Buryats, Eveny, Chuchki, Lapps, Koreans, and Japanese, among others. It is a rapidly industrializing and militarizing nation, largely following the strategies employed by Germany, and, to a lesser extent, Denmark and Austria-Hungary. It is quickly becoming a world power with an increasingly large influence on European politics. It has large coal resources in Siberia and oil resources in the Caucasus and Central Asia, helping further its progress. History Revolution Following the Russian Revolution and the abdication of Nikolai II as Tsar, the Russian Communist Party quickly established control over all of the former empire. Lenin was chosen to be head of the new Soviet Government. He quickly embarked upon a move towards Marxist communism, including collectivization of farms and the abolition of private property. This made the state the owner of all land in the USSR, making it the largest landowner in the world. The "Danish Gains" and the Red Flame's Spread In revenge for Danish attempts to help the Tsar, the Soviet Union forced Denmark to cede the coastal areas of Copenhagen (Kopengagen in the USSR), making it a part of the Soviet Union, to ensure Soviet passage out of the Baltic into the North and Atlantic. Russia also supported the rise of communist governments in Bulgaria, Serbia, Spain and Morocco among others. The Soviet-Danish-Japanese War In an act of both "spreading the revolution" and revenge for the failed Russo-Japanese War, Denmark and the Soviet Union declared war on the Japanese Empire on December 1st 1919. Denmark was tasked with invading Formosa(Taiwan) and the USSR with seizing Korea and Japan. Uses of chemical weapons like Tsiklon Si and incendiaries proved devastating to Japan; the Koreans only needed agitation to revolt due to mistreatment by the Japanese and before long the Korean SSR enterred the USSR. The Japanese fleet was devastated at the Second Battle of Tsushima Strait, revenge for previous Russian humiliation there. The USSR invaded Karafuto(Japanese Sakhalin) and won easily. With the help of the Siamese, Danish forces achieved multiple victories in Taiwan. Russian plans for invading Japan were ruined when Denmark outright broke the agreement over how the invasion was to be conducted by invading Aomori. Soviet troops were forced to land earlier than expected in Fukuoka and Sapporo. Danish troops left Aomori and moved to Formosa; a plan to give the USSR Taiwan in exchange for massive Japanese reparations was put into place and Formosa ended up Soviet. This was followed by Japan's surrender and the royal family's execution in late February and early March. Rebels continued to fight Soviet forces until May 1920, when it was agreed that a new emperor could be appointed to serve as a figurehead and governor. The current emperor is Ojihito. Territory Overview The Soviet Union inherited the various territories of the Russian Empire in the treaty that ended the Russian Revolution. The USSR stretches from Western Poland to Kamchatka and from Novaya Zemyla to Tajikistan, spreading a diverse series of landscapes and peoples. In addition, the USSR took much of coastal Copenhagen from Denmark and seized Iceland following a dispute by Denmark and Spain over the island for fear that leaving the dispute there would tear the Communist League apart. In addition, Korea, Taiwan, and Japan were annexed following the Danish-Soviet-Japanese War. Soviet Socialist Republics and Autonomous Cities The USSR is divided into 21 Soviet Socialist Republics, or SSRs. These are administrative subdivisions, usually ethnic or traditional, that make up the USSR. There is also 1 Autonomous City, or AC. These SSRs have equal representation in the Soviet Congress; this ethnic equality was part of why the Bolsheviks were so successful in mobilizing so many, whereas the Tsar was thoroughly Russian. List of SSRs and ACs (SSR/AU, capital) Icelandic SSR, Reykjavik Finnish SSR, Helsingfors Polish SSR, Warsaw AC of Copenhagen, Kopengagen Moldavian SSR, Kishinev Ukrainian SSR, Kiev Estonian SSR, Tallinn Latvian SSR, Riga Lithuanian SSR, Vilnius Russian SSR, Moscow Georgian SSR, Tiflis Armenian SSR, Yerevan Azerbaijani SSR, Baku Kazakh SSR, Astana Uzbek SSR, Tashkent Turkmen SSR, Ashgabat Tajik SSR, Dushnanbe Kyrgyz SSR, Bishkek SIberian SSR, Khabarovsk Korean SSR, Seoul Japanese SSR, Tokyo Taiwanese SSR, Taipei "USSR" In Primary SSR Languages Russian: Союз Советских Социалистических Республик Ukrainian: Союз Радянських Соціалістичних Республік Belarussian: Саюз Савецкіх Сацыялістычных Рэспублік Polish: Związek Socjalistycznych Republik Radzieckich Finnish: Neuvostoliitto Sosialististen Swedish(spoken in Finland): Sovjetunionen Republikerna Icelandic: Sovét Sósíalista lýðveldi Romanian(spoken in Moldova): Uniunea Republicilor Sovietice Socialiste Lithuanian: Tarybų Socialistinių Respublikų Sąjunga Latvian: Padomju Sociālistisko Republiku Estonian: Nõukogude Sotsialistlike Riikide Liidu Vabariikide Azerbaijani: Sovet Sosialist Respublikaları İttifaqı Armenian: Սովետական Սոցիալիստական Հանրապետությունների Միություն Georgian: საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკების Korean: 소련 사회주의 공화국의 연합 Japanese: ソビエト社会主義共和国連邦 Chinese(spoken in Taiwan/Formosa): 蘇維埃社會主義共和國聯盟 Government The Soviet Union is technically a constitutionally non-democratic three-branch single party state. Executive The executive branch is headed by the Premier of the Soviet Union, currently Leon Trotsky, who inherited it from Vladimir Lenin. He handles all executive decisions with absolute authority. The Chairman of the Politburo, currently Nikolai Bukharin, heads a small committee made up of six men who handle Foriegn Affairs, Internal Affairs, Defense, Intelligence, Information, and Economics. These chairs are currently filled by Nikita Khrushchev, Lev Kamenev, Georgy Zhukov, Lavrenty Beriya, Alexei Romanov (the former Tsarevich), and Grigory Zinoviev. For a few months Intelligence and Information were one ministry, headed by Josef Stalin, before his execution for plotting against the Politburo. The current General Secretary of the Party is Georgy Malenkov. Ministries Foreign Affairs handles all diplomacy and peaceful foreign relations. It operates embassies, consulates, the treatment of Soviets abroad, as well as travel, the Soviet National Railway System and co-manages the BERN USSR lines, as well as the Russian flag carrier Aeroflot. Internal Affairs handles government issues, the SSRs, and internal incidents. Defense controls the Red Army, Red Navy, and Red Air Army. It controls all military academies, strategic decisions, and plans defense and attack. It also controls the Bukharin Lines, the lines of fortifications along Russia's borders with the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the German Empire. Intelligence handles the Soviet Intelligence Agency and State Security Force, and as such, controls espionage and intelligence gathering. Information controls propaganda publication, the newspaper ''Pravda ''(a creation of the deceased Josef Stalin), and also ensures government popularity at home. Economics handles the Treasury and virtually all trade and economics due to the Soviet state-controlled economic system. Legislative This branch is composed of the 212-person Soviet Congress; there are ten delegates from each SSR and two from each AU. All Congressmen are members of the communist party. The current Speaker is Sergei Kirov. Ultimately the Congress is unelected, with party members appointing their representatives, and the fact that to be a participant you have to be a communist. Judicial This branch consists of the Soviet Supreme Court. Unlike the US Supreme Court, the Soviet Supreme Court handles not only constitutionality of laws (judicial review), it also issues "guiding advice" on how lower courts should interpret the laws of the Soviet Union. Military Armed Forces The Soviet Military consists of the Red Army, Red Air Army, and Red Navy, as well as the Suvorov and Nakhimov military academies. It is being brought up to European power standards due to Russia's massive industrialization. It operates under a no first strike policy. The Red Military has been tried and tested in the Soviet-Japanese War and nearly came to be used in what almost became a Turko-Soviet War. Espionage The Soviet Intelligence Agency and State Security Force are the two primary Soviet intelligence bureaus. The SIA handles gathering foreign intelligence and foreign espionage; the SSF gains intel at home and crushes internal dissent. The SIA has played a large role in attempting to prop up communist governments in Spain, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Denmark, and does work in Germany and Turkey as well. Economy The Soviet economy is entirely controlled by the state, in accordance with communist principles, and is rapidly industrializing and collectivizing. It is, however, still largely agricultural. Despite this, German scholars have repeatedly placed the USSR third in thier European Heirarchy, behind Germany(1) and Britain(2), but ahead of traditional European powers like France(4), Spain(5), and Turkey(8), and ahead of other rising stars like Italy(6) and Scandinavia(7). A large part of Soviet industrializing attempts have been addressed towards military buildup, and as a result civilian growth is coming along more slowly. There are few white-collar jobs, if any. Soviet farmers typically produce potatoes, wheat, and barley; attempts to grow corn have failed. Soviet factories typically make military equipment, or process Siberian coal and Caucasian oil. There are multiple factories devoted to weapons research. Diplomacy The USSR's Foreign Ministry handles foreign relations. The current Foreign Minister is Nikita Kruschkhev. Current Soviet allies include France, Serbia, and Denmark. Pro-Soviet puppet regimes in Spain and Bulgaria largely fell apart. Despite the rise of Italian communist rebels, the USSR has had no move to aid them. Russia gets along tolerably with Germany, however it has nearly gone to war with Turkey on multiple occasions and both have sponsored extensive terrorist actions in each other's territories.